Chapter 111

Episode 111

Suddenly, Oh Yoori asked me if I acted well, and when I inquired about her reason, she mentioned a lack of strength in our forces.

“It’s not enough to just pull the trainees from Girl 100 to our side. The people Ye Han-na is recruiting aren’t enough either.”

“Hmmm…”

No, it’s not accurate to say it’s insufficient. If we secure just those two forces, then as Ye Han-na and I planned, we can pull the broadcast’s reins over to us. But if we want more than that, the conversation changes.

“So, are you saying you want to completely take control of Girl 100, beyond just seizing the broadcast’s initiative?”

“Exactly. We need to eliminate the hate speech and the mudslinging between the trainees and the broadcast, so we can make use of Girl 100 right away.”

Oh Yoori’s words were an ideal outcome. Clearly, that would bring us far more than just simple control; it would yield even better consequences. But whether it could actually be realized was another story altogether.

“I’d want to do that if possible too. But Kim Seon-ye isn’t a fool or incompetent; she wouldn’t just watch us do that!”

“Then what do you think PD Kim Seon-ye will do?”

“Are you asking how Kim Seon-ye will intervene with us?”

“No, just about her overall movements.”

That wasn’t such a difficult question.

“PD Kim Seon-ye is likely focusing on internal discipline. After all, the source of Girl 100’s controversy ultimately came from internal personnel, including you. It’s true that she has a lot to do with higher-ups, sponsors, and the press, but first, she has to wrap up the internal discipline to issue her stance or counter-evidence. If another piece of information or revelation surfaces while she’s trying to establish her lines and policies externally, that’d be quite the disaster.”

She’s probably got a splitting headache. Yet, that wasn’t the only issue she was facing.

“Above all, the biggest problem is that she has to do all of that alone. Because there’s no one she can trust.”

Oh Yoori let out a small admiring gasp at my words and nodded.

“I also think the same as Team Leader Seon. Most of the information currently known has likely come out from colleagues she used to trust and work with.”

“Exactly.”

It seems reasonable to assume that Ye Han-na, the center of the faction opposing Kim Seon-ye, might have been the cause. However, from Kim Seon-ye’s perspective, it’s not that simple.

“In reality, the evidence held by PD Ye Han-na, who has fundamentally formed the groundwork for the discussion you’ve raised, includes many pieces that are hard to obtain just with her authority. It would make sense to think someone close to Ye Han-na is acting as a spy.”

The records she obtained had a level of quality thanks to my systematic assistance. But from the viewpoint of PD Kim Seon-ye, who does not know of my existence and abilities, it’s more reasonable to believe that someone among her subordinates has betrayed her rather than assuming Ye Han-na, a step removed from the power center of Girl 100, has collected all the records herself.
It’s reasonable to think that Ye Han-na, who is a step away from the center of power at Girl 100, didn’t gather all the records but that one of her subordinates has betrayed her.

As the conversation progressed, I started to anticipate why she brought up this topic.

“Right now, are you trying to say that the situation where Kim Seon-ye can’t trust people is what you want to highlight, Yuri?”

She readily agreed with my words.

“Exactly. If PD Kim Seon-ye were in a position to proceed independently without trusting anyone, it wouldn’t matter at all. But right now, we are at a moment of challenge. It’s a massive penalty to find it difficult to build trust while needing to draw in manpower and expand power. She will desperately need a reliable subordinate.”

Oh Yoori’s unique red eyes sparkled as she spoke.

“And I believe Team Leader Seon can be that subordinate.”

I questioned her judgment.

“How? Even if I seem reasonably competent in Kim Seon-ye’s eyes, I lack the reliability to be someone she would entrust everything to. To be frank, I’m someone who has gone against Kim Seon-ye’s will from the start and turned our relationship into an equal one through negotiation, which is far from trust.”

If the goal was to become her subordinate, then the initial plan should have been different.

Now, it’s clear that my relationship with her has already solidified.

“Moreover, I’m an outsider. With the position of being Gyeoul’s manager, I might be considered an associate of Girl 100, but I lack the qualifications to be part of the management. Would she really trust someone like me as a subordinate? No matter how desperate Kim Seon-ye is, I can’t see her making such a risky choice.”

She is more likely to trust a newbie who just joined two days ago than me.

“If there’s proof to buy trust, it’s possible.”

“Proof? What kind?”

“What’s most needed by PD Kim Seon-ye right now is what you should provide to build trust. It’s something that Team Leader Seon can use to trade, and everyone knows it could yield great benefits.”

“What is that?”

Oh Yoori pointed to herself with her finger and said.

“Me.”

“…You?”

“Yes, if I were to sell myself, it would be possible to gain PD Kim Seon-ye’s trust.”

“….”

It wasn’t an impossible story. In fact, it was a feasible one. The trainee that Kim Seon-ye would be obsessively worried about, even more than the 99 others, was Oh Yoori—the very source of this situation.

If I were to hand her over, trust that didn’t exist would be forged. But the burden Oh Yoori would face in that process was a separate matter.

“Are you okay with that?”

“With what?”

I looked at Oh Yoori, who replied as if she didn’t understand the meaning of my question.

“If you go now, you could escape safely without anyone knowing. But if you return to Kim Seon-ye, she will hold you accountable for the aftermath. You would get sucked into the eye of the storm called Girl 100 and become the very sinner itself.”
“You know, if you go in like that, you’ll become the sinner itself.”

“Well, that’s actually good. To recruit the trainees, I need to get to the center of it all. There’s no one better than me for that job, right?”

“You probably won’t even have the freedom to attempt recruitment. Since you’re the seed of controversy, you’ll be glued to people and partly kept in confinement.”

“Then, I guess I’ll have to try to recruit through Older Sister Gyeoul. It will be harder because direct involvement will become difficult, but if that arrogant genius, Older Sister Gyeoul, cooperates, we can totally make it work. Absolutely.”

I felt a bit frustrated as I warned Oh Yoori, who was only looking at our gains without reflecting on herself.

“In that process, you might end up being branded as a mental patient or a pathological liar. Once that image forms, it’ll become nearly impossible for you to work in the entertainment industry as you wish.”

“Before that happens, Team Leader Seon will help me, right?”

“…”

“Oh, am I going to be thrown away?”

“Don’t say that; I’m not throwing you away.”

Oh Yoori smiled brightly at my words.

Her innocent brightness was both hilarious and adorable, so I patted her small head.

She spun her head around, which I took as a sign to stop, but she grabbed my hand and placed it on her again. I guessed she wanted me to pet her somewhere else.

Oh Yoori accepted my touch as if nothing was wrong and said,

“Well then, I guess there’s nothing to worry about. I’ll recruit the trainees, Writer Ye Han-na will recruit the broadcasting station people, and Team Leader Seon will recruit Kim Seon-ye. And we’ll blind the eyes and ears of those people so we can smoothly form our forces. …Of course, the hardest part will be Team Leader Seon, but I believe you can do it.”

“…”

“Team Leader Seon has to become the courtier.”

Oh Yoori, who volunteered to be sold off, said to me,

“Kim Seon-ye should be courted to the extent of giving away her liver and gallbladder.”

*

As a result of that conversation, I found myself here with Seok Hyun-woo and Oh Yoori.

At the door of the editing room, Seok Hyun-woo was muttering the word ‘leader’ like a mantra, and he nodded, asked Oh Yoori for a moment of cooperation, and then had her put her hands behind her back before cuffing her.

“…Where did you get those?”

“Ah…, I prepared them for dramatic effect. Even if the acting is lacking, having props can make it look natural.”

“…”

…With that level of preparation, maybe Seok Hyun-woo wanted to do this after all.

Having suddenly been cuffed, Oh Yoori spoke somewhat bluntly, as if she was dissatisfied with her treatment.

“Mister, the cuffs are way too loose. Tighten them properly. I might slip out of them.”

…So that was what she was unhappy about.

“But if I tighten them properly, they might hurt.”

“A bit of proper pain helps with immersion, so it’s actually better. Please tighten them properly.”

“…If that’s what you want, then yes, I will comply.”
“Don’t just sit there and watch when the live broadcast starts. It’s totally fine to throw a fit or something.”

“…Understood. I’ll act like the leader of the operation.”

It seemed a bit overly eager, but listening to the passionate conversation between the two made me think that at least there wouldn’t be any bad acting. So I felt relieved and said,

“Well then, I’ll go in first. Please come in when I give the signal.”

As I opened the door and stepped inside, I saw PD Kim Seon-ye frowning at the monitor, just like last time.

“Have you arrived?”

I greeted her politely and said,

“Yes, thank you for making time for me.”

Only then did Kim Seon-ye look away from the monitor and said with a crooked expression,

“As you can see, I’m very busy right now. As you know, a little rat has muddied my Girl 100. So if what you wanted to tell me is a pathetic waste of my time, I’ll be very disappointed.”

“That definitely won’t happen. It’s about that little rat.”

Seeing Kim Seon-ye give me a haughty look as if to scoff and say, “Go ahead,” I called for them waiting outside the door.

“Come in.”

The door burst open, and Seok Hyun-woo roughly pulled in Oh Yoori and threw her face-first onto the floor.

He seemed intent on not going easy on her, gripping the handcuffed Oh Yoori tightly against the ground.

In a cold tone, he said,

“Don’t move. You’ll get hurt.”

“‘….’”

That was an ad-lib I hadn’t even instructed.

…Damn, they’re really good at this.

Oh Yoori, unable to concede, trembled as she glanced around with a mix of resentment, hatred, fear, and despair, tears welling up in her eyes. Then, grinding her teeth, she looked down and said,

“…I-I’m sorry.”

It truly was an S-tier display of acting potential with an overwhelming sense of immersion.

Kim Seon-ye, unable to hide her surprise at the overwhelming scene presented by the two actors, unintentionally dropped her coffee cup and said,

“…What is this?”

I smiled as slyly as possible, without showing any signs of panic.

“I’ve caught the little rat you were looking for.”

With a dazed expression, Kim Seon-ye, who had completely dropped her cup, looked at Oh Yoori’s face and suddenly stood up, clapping her hands while saying,

“Do you know how I feel right now? Team Leader Seon?”

She must be feeling good, since the problem she was worried about was unexpectedly resolved. Well.

“Don’t you feel good?”

“It’s not just good. I feel like I’d say yes even if Team Leader Seon dragged me to a hotel and raped me right now.”

“…..”

“Are you thinking of something?”

No, you crazy woman.

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